Flower Dreams
by ryunokoneko
Summary: Rangiku is struggling to go on with her life after Gin's death when he suddenly appears before her...  Rated T for future.
1. Chapter 1

This story is a little something for my first reviewer, More2life, who likes GinxRangiku as much as I do. Thanks for your review and encouragement. :) It's a loose sequel to my other fic: A Confused Flower.

And some AN before I get into the story. This is the first time I'm writing in English from the beginning rather than writing it Japanese and then translating it to English, though I have to admit that I did a lot of translating in my head while writing this. xD Japanese just flows so much better for me when writing manga fanfics. :p

Anyways, I think I did a decent job of keeping Gin in character for this chapter, but with him having a soft spot for Rangiku, I imagine that with her, he's a bit different. If you think I wrote him too OCC, feel free to let me know.

Also as I implied in the summary, I'm planning making this one more of a series. I have some other (vague) GinxRangiku scenarios that I want to write though I'm not quite sure how this story will progress at this point. And a bit of a warning: I'll definitely try to keep Gin from being too OCC, but as the story develops, I have a feeling Gin won't be the Gin we were all used to seeing. Partly because there's something special between Gin and Rangiku and partly because I believe in character development.

So now, without further ado, some GinxRangiku. Hope you like it.

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><p>Rangiku was slowly making her way back to her rooms in the 10th Division barracks. She was so tired of putting on a happy front for everyone. Some days were better than others, but some days were so hard since losing Gin. She knew her captain saw through her facade, but he never commented. Though today had been especially bad, and Captain Histugaya had taken one look at her and sent her home. Home to her empty rooms. What was she going to do? She didn't want to be alone, but Captain hadn't listened to her protests.<p>

With a heavy heart, Rangiku opened the door to her rooms and stepped inside, only to come up short. There was a pair of sandals by the door that didn't belong to her. She looked at them in bewilderment when a shadow fell across her face and she looked up.

"Welcome home, Rangiku." The silver-haired Shinigami said simply.

"Gi...Gin...?" She asked unable to believe her eyes. "Wh...What? But how? I thought..." _you died. _The last words dying on her lips before they could be spoken.

"I came to see you." He said simply.

Rangiku reached out tentatively not able to believe her eyes. He must be an aparition. She must be hallucinating. No wonder Captain had sent her home...

Her hand touched his chest and she could feel his warmth and the steady beat of his heart. That was all the confirmation she needed and she flew into his arms, letting his warmth soothe her.

Gin's arms wrapped around her tightly, just holding her to him, letting her absorb his strength.

They stood like that for what seemed like hours, but in reality could only be a few minutes before Gin gently set her away from him.

Rangiku tried to cling to him, afraid he would just disappear again. "No, not yet. Don't leave me yet. Just let me stay like this for a little while longer."

"I'm not leaving." Gin assured her. "But you need to eat. You've lost weight."

"I... I haven't been able to eat lately." Rangiku admitted.

Gin started pulling her to the kitchen. "You need to eat."

Rangiku pulled on his hand to stop him. "I don't have anything in the kitchen. I haven't gone shopping lately."

Gin shook his head at her. "That's no good."

"I..." Rangiku hesitated. She could go shopping, but what if Gin was gone when she got back? And he couldn't go with her. He was supposed to be dead. What if someone saw him? How was she going to explain it? She didn't even know what was going on and how he could be here.

"We'll go to Rukongai together. At this hour, no should be around the barracks, so we can slip out the back way." Gin said sensing her dilenma.

Once outside, Rangiku bought 2 bento boxes and some dango, while Gin stayed a bit away, his face and hair hidden, but where Rangiku could still see him. Then they took their food and went to an empty field. One they had discovered while they were still living in Rukongai together, before they had become Shinigamis.

They ate their bentos and dango slowly sitting side-by-side, enjoying the warm sun and the fresh breeze carrying the scents of flowers.

There were so many things Rangiku wanted to say to Gin. So many questions she wanted to ask, but she couldn't find the words, so they ate in silence, just basking in each other's company.

After they were done eating, and the remnants of their food had been put away, Rangiku sat between Gin's legs, leaning her back against him with his arms loosely wrapped around her.

She couldn't find the words to voice her questions, or maybe it was that she was too afraid to voice them, so she started reminiscing with him about their past.

She talked for hours, sitting in the comfort of Gin's arms. She talked about how they had met, and lived together in Rukongai. How he had given her a birthday. How they had become Shinigamis. All the little and big things that had happened to them. Finally coming up to Aizen's betrayal where her words faltered.

"I'm sorry. I should have believed in you. I should have known that you wouldn't betray us, betray me." Rangiku whispered softly.

"Don't apologize. If you had believed in me, Aizen would have gotten rid of me then and there. I'm sorry I had to fool you."

"I... I always questioned whether you really had betrayed us and I went back and forth, but then I thought I never really knew you, so I couldn't judge whether you would or not. But I was wrong. I did know. I just... didn't want to hope."

Gin smiled. Not the usual cruel, cold smile he showed everyone. This one was softer, more gentle. Meant only for the one woman that was all he had ever cared about.

By now, Rangiku was fighting to push away the sleepiness. She hadn't been sleeping well either, and being with Gin was so comforting.

"Sleep. You need rest, too." Gin's fingertips softly traced the dark circles under her eyes.

"Hold me, then. And promise me you'll be here when I wake up."

"I'm always with you now, Ragiku. When I died and my spirit particles were disinigrating, you touched me and absorbed some of them into you before I disappeared."

Rangiku tried to think about what he said, but sleep was tugging her down, and she couldn't fight it anymore.

Rangiku woke up with a start. "Gin? Where are you?" She asked trying to look around.

It was dark, and... she was lying in a futon? And there was no sign of Gin. As her eyes slowly adjusted to the darkness, she realized she was in her room in the 10th Division Barracks. What? But how? She was with Gin in the Rukongai when she fell asleep. And where was Gin? Had he brought her back to her rooms only to leave her again while she slept?

As her thoughts whirled, the events of the prior day started coming back to her. She had woken up in the morning feeling terrible and running a fever. Normally she would have used any excuse to get out of work, but she hadn't wanted to be alone with her thoughts so she had dragged her heavy body out of her futon, gotten dressed and gone to work.

Upon reaching the 10th Division Office, she had mumbled something about being sorry she was late, and gone to take her seat, but Captain had taken one look at her and sent her home. She'd tried to protest that she was fine, but he wouldn't hear of it. So she had slowly dragged herself back to her rooms, where she had been too tired to do anything more than toss off the outer robe and hakama of her shihakushou, fall into her futon and pass out.

With a heavy heart, Rangiku realized that it had all been just a dream. Tears started falling down her cheeks, leaving silver trails in their wake. Rangiku looked around her room through vision blurred by tears. Everything in her room was as she had left it when she got home, and... Wait, not everything. Her shihakushou was neatly folded next to her futon and there was a glass of water and some medicine sitting on a tray next to it. As her tears dried, Rangiku puzzled over that, and try as she might she couldn't remember folding her robe. Nor could she remember anything about the medicine or water. And she _knew_ she didn't have any medicine here. She never kept any around. So how had it gotten there?

_It must have been Captain. _She thought. He must have come by to check up on her and drop off some medicine, only to find her sleeping so he'd left them there. Though why had he bothered to fold her clothes? Then she thought about her neat-freak of a captain. Maybe he couldn't stand her clothes strewn about and had folded them. That would make sense.

_I'll have to thank him tomorrow. _She thought, taking the medicine and falling back into the futon.

"Morning, Captain. And thank you." Rangiku said to Hitsugaya upon entering the division office.

Hitsugaya gave her a funny look. "For what?"

"For yesterday. The medicine and coming by to check on me."

He gave her an even more funny look. "Are you still sick? I didn't stop by yesterday."

"But... when I woke up in the middle of the night, there was water and medicine next to my futon. It wasn't you?"

"No."

"Then who...?"

"Must have been Hinamori, then. She asked about you yesterday when she was here dropping off papers."

"Aah, I see." That made more sense. "I'll have to thank her later than."

Later that day, Rangiku was taking a walk when she ran into Hinamori.

"Are doing better? I was going to stop by to see how you were doing, but I got so caught up in paperwork I didn't realize until it was so late."

"You didn't stop by?"

"No, I wanted to, but..." Hinamori looked a little perplexed.

"But Captain said..." Rangiku shook her head. "Nevermind. Thanks for asking about me."

"Are you feeling alright now?" Hinamori asked looking concerned. "Maybe you should go home and rest some more."

"No, no, I'm fine." Rangiku told her with a forced smile. "I better get back before Captain gets mad at me for taking too long. I'll see you later."

_If it wasn't Captain and it wasn't Hinamori, who could it have been?_ Rangiku mused to herself. Or was Captain embarrassed to admit he'd been by so he'd just put it on Hinamori? Yes, that must be it. That was the only explanation that made any sense. No one else would have come by her rooms.

Rangiku was passing a pair of 4th Division shinigami on her way back to the division office when she couldn't help but overhear a conversation that peaked her interest.

"I heard you got scolded by Iemura Third Seat today for losing some cold medicine."

"Yeah, I was doing inventory of the medicine room yesterday and I could have sworn everything was where it was, but I guess I must have dropped it somewhere or something." Hanataro said a little glumly.

"That's too bad. Cheer up though. We all make mistakes. I'm sure Iemura Third Seat will get over it soon." The other shinigami, one Rangiku couldn't remember the name of, replied.

"Yeah, I guess." Hanataro replied still a little glum.

"Sorry, I couldn't help but overhear. You said some cold medicine was missing? Which kind?" Rangiku asked the duo.

"The special powdered one that works really well. We only have a small stock of it. Why?"

"Oh, nothing. I was just curious. Thanks and sorry to stop you." Rangiku said waving over her shoulder as she left the 2 perplexed 4th Division shinigami behind.

Rangiku's thoughts were whirling again as questions tumbled around in her head. That was the medicine that had been left for her yesterday. But why would her captain steal it? Or could the missing medicine just be a coincidence? But then there was supposed to be only be a small stock of it. How likely was it that it was just a coincidence?

Rangiku abruptly stopped walking as a new thought popped into her head. _Could it have been Gin?_

_What if... What if not everything of yesterday had just been a dream? What if Gin had just used her dream to communicate with her? _Rangiku placed a trembling hand over her heart. _What if... What if... What if Gin really was there with her? _


	2. Chapter 2

Wow, thanks for all the reviews and to everyone who's added the story/me to your alerts/favourites.

I've been extremely busy with a new job and having to move for the job. But now that I'm settled, I'll try to update more regularly. And yes, I do plan on continuing this story, and right now I'm having to write a few paragraphs at a time, so the updates might be a bit slow, but my goal is to at least update 1 chapter per month. Though I'll definitely try to update more than that.

So anyways, here goes...

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It had been several days since Rangiku's strange dream and she wasn't much closer to an answer. She had checked around as discretely as possible and found out that her Captain hadn't bought the cold medicine that day, but who was to say that he didn't have some around already.

She let out a frustrated sigh. Short of confessing the whole situation to her Captain, there was no way she could confirm whether he had been lying out of embarrassment or not. And then there was the other fact that if she confessed the whole situation to her Captain, he might say it had been him when it hadn't. She knew he didn't approve of her feelings for Gin. He still didn't believe that Gin wasn't a traitor. Even though her and Ichigo had told them all that in the end Gin had been killed trying to kill Aizen. Though Gin's reasons for his actions had died with him. Plus he might think she was finally losing it if she confessed everything. No, she had to find it out some other way. But how?

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a flash of silver, white and black, and turned toward it, Gin's name on her lips. Only it wasn't Gin, it was just her silver-haired Captain.

Rangiku felt a blinding pain in her stomach and she looked down to find a hollow's claw protruding from her mid-section, covered in her blood. Maybe she _was_ losing it. She had been distracted enough on the battlefield to not notice the hollow behind her.

"Growl, Haineko." She released her zanpakutou, and in seconds the hollow that had stabbed her was sliced by her zanpakutou's ashes.

"Matsumoto!" She saw her Captain running towards her as she collapsed to the ground, unable to stand anymore.

"What the hell were you thinking, getting distracted like that during a battle?"

"I'm sorry, Captain." She mumbled as the world went black around her.

Rangiku opened her eyes and looked up to a white ceiling. She looked around to see white wall. Where was she? She felt a sharp pain in her stomach as she tried to sit up and the events of the day came flooding back. Or was it yesterday? She couldn't tell how long she'd been out.

Rangiku winced at how she'd been so distracted that she hadn't even been able to notice a low level hollow behind her. She cringed at the thought of how livid her Captain must be.

She gingerly sat up taking care of her wounded stomach. She knew she must be in the 4th Division hospital and from the angle of the soft light filtering through the window it looked like it was early evening.

There was a soft knock on the door.

"Come in." Rangiku called knowing it was Captain Unohana from the reiatsu.

"You're awake. That's good. And how are you feeling Vice-Captain Matsumoto?"

"A bit sore." Rangiku replied ruefully.

"That's expected." Unohana replied as she checked Rangiku over.

"When can I go home?"

"Tomorrow if the pain subsides. Otherwise, you should stay here for another day or two."

Rangiku sighed quietly. She hated hospitals and didn't want to stay, but once Captain Unohana made her decision on that, she wasn't going to change it.

"I'll notify Captain Hitsugaya that you're awake. He's been here every morning and evening to check on you for the last 3 days."

"I've been unconscious for 3 days?"

"Yes, you lost quite a bit of blood and there were complications."

Rangiku grimaced. She could just hear her captain yelling at her for being an idiot.

"Vice-Captain Matsumoto, while I won't press you for information, if you feel like talking about what's been bothering you, feel free to stop by my office anytime."  
>"Thank you, Captain Unohana." Rangiku replied looking up.<p>

Rangiku sat in her bed, looking out the window and thinking. She couldn't go on like this. She had to find some answers. But how? Maybe Captain Unohana could help... maybe she would be able to figure out if she was just going crazy or not... maybe-

The door opened a bit forcefully and Rangiku grimaced again. She had been so caught up in her thoughts again that she hadn't noticed her captain's reiatsu.

"Good evening Captain. Nice of you to check on me so often. Sorry for skipping work." She said lightly in her usual manner.

Hitsugaya let out a loud sigh. "What's wrong with you Matsumoto?"

"Well, other than the wound, nothing. I just got a bit distracted."

"Matsumoto." Hitsugaya said warningly.

"I..." Matsumoto faltered. She knew when not to push her captain, but she couldn't tell him the truth either.

Hitsugaya sighed again. "I know you're not going to tell me so I won't even bother asking. But get your act together and get your ass back to work. I can't have my vice-captain out like this every few days."

"Yes Captain, and I'm sorry sir."

"I talked to Unohana. You're to stay here for as long as she deems necessary and them you're to stay home and rest for a few days after that. You can come back to work when she deems you're fit to. In the meanwhile, take that break and find a solution to what's bothering you."

Rangiku nodded. "Thank you, Captain."

Hinamori, Renji and Kira came to visit Rangiku after Htisugaya left and she managed to put a smile on her face through it all until Hinamori shooed the entire group out after noticing how tired Rangiku looked.

After that a few others popped their head in and left her fruits but none stayed.

"How are you feeling, Rangiku-san?" 9th Division Vice-Captain Hisagi Shuhei asked popping his head in.

"Oh hi, Shuhei. I'm fine. I just need a drink. Can you sneak some in for me?"  
>"Are you kidding me? Captain Unohana would kill me if she found out I was sneaking sake in to her patients."<p>

"Damn... I could really use a drink right now."

"What's up? Was your mini-captain that mad?"

"Surprisingly not really. He just seemed more exasperated with me than anything else."

"So then what's wrong?" Shuhei asked, snatching a chair and turning it backwards so he could sit on it facing Rangiku with his arms resting on the back.

Rangiku hesitated for a second. Shuhei was a good friend and of everyone around, he was one of the least likely people to judge her on this. Plus she needed to talk to someone, or she would go crazy.

Shuhei listened quietly while Rangiku told him about her 2 strange sightings/dreams of Gin and the inexplicable medicine that had been left for her.

"So what do you think?" Rangiku asked after finishing her story.

"I think you should talk to Captain Unohana." Shuhei said quietly after a moment.

"You think I've lost it." Rangiku said slightly miffed.

"No, I just thought that if you really did absorb a bit of him like what he told you in your dream, or whatever that was, then Captain Unohana should be able to detect his reiatsu mixing with yours."

Rangiku nodded, seeing Shuhei's point. "But how do I bring this up to her without sounding crazy?"

"The same way you told me."

Rangiku sighed. "There's not much else I can do, is there?"

"Doubtful. Unless you just want to keep waiting and wondering until your next dream/sighting. It's getting late and you look tired. Why don't you sleep on it tonight and decide tomorrow if you want to talk to Captain Unohana or not? I'll try to swing by again tomorrow." Shuhei said getting up and putting the chair back.

"Alright. And Shuhei?"

Shuhei turned around to look at Rangiku.

"Thanks."

"No problem. I'll see you again later. 'Night."

"Night. See you."

Rangiku stared at the door long after Shuhei had left and closed it again. She was tired, but it felt more like the tired from sleeping too much and she didn't think she could sleep anymore tonight. That gave her all night to ponder about how to broach the subject to Captain Unohana.

"You're going to make yourself sick." A familiar voice said to her from the direction of the window.

"Gin?" Rangiku turned towards to window to see a familiar figure lounging on the windowsill. "What are you- Am I dreaming?"

"I was worried." Gin said ignoring her question and walking over to her bed.

Rangiku let out a frustrated sigh. "Gin, I need answers. I don't know what the hell is going on and I keep thinking about this and I get distracted. So tell me, is this a dream? Am I going crazy?"

Gin shook his head. "I don't know if this a dream. It might be your dream, it might be my dream, or it might not be a dream at all."

"You don't feel like a dream." Rangiku said reaching out to touch his hand. "But then after you leave me again, and I look back on it, it seems like it was just a dream, or my imagination or... I don't know!"

"It'll be okay. We'll figure it out." Gin said gently gathering Rangiku in his arms. "Sleep for now. The answers can wait a little longer until after you're healed."

"I don't want to sleep. I slept enough the last 3 days. I need to do something. I need answers. I need... you."

"Sleep for now and regain your strength. You'll be better able to get your answers then." Gin said laying a hand over her eyes.

"But-" Rangiku felt a darkness tugging her conscience down. "No. Gin-"


	3. Chapter 3

Back again with the next installment. Thanks again to everyone for reading, reviewing and adding to your alerts. With how crazy it's been for me, I probably would have abandoned the story for the time being without all your encouragements!

I have snippets of the story written/whirling through my head and not enough time to get it all written down! But I have the next several chapters in the making, just need to get them written (or more like typed). At least I'm doing better with updating and I hope (and plan) to keep it that way.

For the next while, it's going to be a bit shorter chapters so I can keep the updates regular. Otherwise I'll be posting incredibly long chapters every other month or so and I want to do better than that. Please bear with me until my work (and life) calms down a bit more and I have more time to write.

So here goes with Chap 3...

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Rangiku woke the next morning feeling surprisingly refreshed and calm.

She looked around her room and as expected, there was no trace of Gin. Just like that man to put her to sleep and then disappear. But she was going to get to the bottom of this, she vowed.

With her mind made up, Rangiku carefully got out of bed, testing her body and when she found that everything seemed fine, albeit a bit sore, she went in search of Captain Unohana.

Rangiku found the 4th Division Captain in her office.

"Vice-Captain Matsumoto, how are you feeling this morning?"

"Much better, thank you. I was, um, hoping to speak to you."

"Have a seat. Should I call for some tea?"

"Yes, thank you." Rangiku knew she was stalling, but she hadn't really thought of how to tell Captain Unohana the story and she needed to gather her thoughts.

Unohana waited patiently while the tea was delivered and Rangiku took a sip.

"I know that what I'm going to say might sound crazy, and maybe I am going crazy, I don't know. But I need some answers." Rangiku started.

Unohana nodded and remained silent waiting for Rangiku to continue.

"I've had strange sightings/dreams of Gin that don't seem like just regular dreams." She started trying to choose her words with care.

Unohana didn't look surprised. She merely nodded again, and waited for Rangiku to continue.

Feeling slightly better from Unohana's reactions Rangiku went on to explain her sightings/dreams and the strange occurrence with the medicine that couldn't be explained, and finally onto Gin's explanation of how he was here with her.

Unohana quietly listened to Rangiku's story without any hint of her thoughts showing on her face.

Rangiku fell silent after finishing her tale and waited for Unohana's reaction.

"So you would like to know if I can feel Gin's reiatsu inside of you, is that correct?"

Rangiku nodded.

"The simple answer is no, but it's a little more complicated than that." Unohana started. "As you are now, I can only feel your reiatsu. However when you were brought in with your injuries, I detected a very faint reiatsu inside of you that I recognized as former 3rd Division Captain Ichimaru Gin's. And this reiatsu flared slightly as I tried to heal you and resisted entry of another reiatsu into your body."

"Is that what you meant by there being complications?"

"Yes, it made healing you more challenging and as it was causing stress to your body, I had to stop before you were fully healed."

Rangiku was silent trying to absorb the information Unohana had imparted. So she wasn't going crazy, at least not totally. She really had absorbed a part of Gin. But... "What about my sightings of him. There has to be some link obviously, but why is it that I can't tell if it's a dream or not? And what about the medicine? If it was him how would he have gotten it, if he's a part of me?"

"I believe your interactions with him are in your mind as I haven't been able to detect enough of his reiatsu to give him form, though I may be wrong. There may be an element of dream to it, but it doesn't necessarily mean that you have to be asleep when he interacts with you. You may just be entering into a trance state . Again, I can't be sure as I haven't seen this but that is what the evidence currently suggests. As for the medicine, I currently have no explanation. There is still too much unknown about what is happening to you. In all the years I have never heard of one shinigami absorbing parts of another. I can't say as to what will happen in the future, or even how this is occurring now."

"How long before I would know what will happen and what's going on?"

"It could take years before we see any changes, or we could see changes in a month. As for answers, again it could take us years. The person who knows best might be former Captain Ichimaru."

Rangiku sat quietly absorbing what Unohana said before asking her next question. "Does anyone aside from you know of this?"

Unohana shook her head. "Not currently, I did not detect any risks so unless things progress in a dangerous manner, it is up to you to decide who and how much to reveal. However, if things do progress in a manner that would be dangerous to you, or to others, I will have to reveal it."

Rangiku nodded and stood up. "I understand and thank you."

"And what will you do now?"

"I... need some time to think. I'm not sure what to do right now..."

Unohana nodded. "You may go home today if you like. I will notify Captain Hitsugaya that you have gone home, but should rest for the next week."

"Thank you, Captain Unohana."

"And I'd like you to come by and see me in a week before you go back to work. Or if you can feel changes occurring, come see me immediately."

"I will and thank you for everything."

Rangiku slowly made her way to her room to collect her things and get ready to head home.

After receiving some medicine and strict instructions on what she was and wasn't allowed to do, along with admonishments that she must eat, Rangiku was allowed to leave.

When she reached her rooms in the 10th Division barracks, she opened her door half expecting to see Gin. She looked around and sighed, disappointed when she could see no trace of him. She wanted, no she needed to talk to that man.

Rangiku sat down on her couch feeling rather tired. Her morning energy had dissipated only to be replaced by questions. Questions no one had the answer to, except perhaps Gin. Though that damn man didn't seem to want to give her any.

Rangiku sighed. She seemed to be doing that a lot lately.

_Well, Rangiku, sitting here moping around isn't going to bring him about. Gin will come and go as he pleases. He always has. So get your sorry ass off the couch and do something to take your mind off of him._

With her thoughts made up, she decided she needed to go shopping. Her fridge was still empty and she was supposed to be eating and taking her medicine. Plus she really needed that sake. Maybe she'd ask Shuhei to come over after work and drink with her.

Back in her rooms, having ate a simple meal and taken her medicine after her excursion, Rangiku was back on the couch feeling drained.

She leaned back and rested her head on the couch, deciding a nap was in order.

"Well Gin, will you come talk to me now?" She muttered as she fell asleep.

Rangiku awoke to a knock on her door. A little disoriented she looked around, seeing it was dark.

"Coming." She called out as someone knocked again lightly. She looked down, checked that she was still presentable and headed to the door, turning on lights as she made her way to the entrance.

It was Shuhei holding a large bottle of sake. Right, she had asked him to come by after work...

"Hi Shuhei, thanks for coming. Sorry, I was tired and fell asleep on my couch."

"Should I come by tomorrow or something then?" Shuhei asked concerned.

"No, no. I'm feeling much better now, and I can really use that drink. Plus I could use the company." She smiled ruefully.

"Alright. Oh, and I also brought these." Shuhei said holding up a bag of yakitori from her favorite yatai.

Rangiku grinned. "You're the best, Shuhei. Come on in. I'll grab some cups and plates for us. Why don't you make yourself comfortable on the couch?"

"Sure. So how'd it go with Captain Unohana today? Did you talk to her? Get any answers?"

"Went well. Yes. Yes and no. In that order. I'll tell you about it over the sake." Rangiku called over her shoulder as she made her way to her kitchen.

When they were both comfortable, sake in one hand and yakitori in the other, she started telling Shuhei all that Unohana had said.

"So now, I'm waiting for Gin to show up again so I can get some answers out of him, but you know how he is. He's always coming and going and never any indication of when he'll be around." Rangiku complained after finishing her conversation with Unohana between liberal gulps of sake and bites of yakitori. "So how are things on your end? What'd you do with your bike?"

The bike Rangiku was referring to was the one he had brought back from the real world and rode around the Sereitei, and gotten yelled at by Grand Captain Yamamoto for.

"I've taken to riding it around Rukongai. No one there to yell at me for it." Shuhei laughed.

They talked late into the night, catching up and getting drunk. They killed the bottle Shuhei had brought early on, so Rangiku had dug into her stash and they were now to the end of their 3rd bottle.

"Well," Shuhei said getting up rather unsteadily. "I have work tomorrow, so I better get home..."

"Thanks for coming." Rangiku said walking him to the door. Rather unsteady on her feet herself.

After Shuhei had left, Rangiku crashed into her futon, still wondering if Gin would come talk to her.

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Yatai: Japanese mobile (typically food) stands that usually come out at night or at festivals. (I'd suggest looking it up if you can't picture it).

Yakitori: Grilled chicken on a stick. Awesome finger food that goes well with beer or (the right) sake.


	4. Chapter 4

Wow... it's been over a year since I've last updated this story... Time flies, and life is a demanding mistress.

Sorry and thanks to everyone who's favourited/reviewed the story. I have 2 short chapters as an update this time, and hope to be a lot more consistent with the updates.

And the usual disclaimer: As aliens haven't landed and re-written our copyright laws, I do not own Bleach or any of the Bleach characters, and in this story (so far) there aren't even original characters I can lay claim to.

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It was the day after the night of drinking with Rangiku, and Shuhei was regretting having matched Rangiku cup for cup of Sake. _But damn, that woman can drink._ He thought to himself, still nursing a pounding headache well after midday.

He hadn't been able to focus on any of the division's paperwork, so had decided some fresh air to clear his head might help. And now he found himself at the grave of Captain Tousen's un-named friend.

Shuhei leaned against a tree at the base of the hill and looked up at the overcast sky. Thankful that today wasn't a bright sunny day. He didn't think his head would be able to take it.

Instead of wallowing in his misery, Shuhei let his mind wander, and naturally it went in the direction of what Rangiku had told him.

He had never really liked the former 3rd Division Captain. He had always thought that Ichimaru was hiding something. Something sinister. And after Aizen's betrayal, Shuhei had thought he had been proven right, and for a time, had even thought that Ichimaru had had hand in influencing Captain Tousen. But he now knew what had driven Captain Tousen to it, and while he couldn't condone the choices his former captain had made, he understood them. It was Aizen who had prayed on Captain Tousen's sense of justice and manipulated him.

While he couldn't say that Ichimaru was innocent, he did believe the reports from Ichigo and Rangiku that Ichimaru had been killed trying to kill Aizen. And though Shuhei couldn't really say he knew what had driven Ichimaru, he had a suspicion that it was a certain strawberry blond Vice-Captain. Shuhei had for a time been attracted to the busty, vibrant Vice-Captain before realizing that they made better friends than they would make lovers. And he had seen the the veiled looks Gin had given Rangiku, though if Shuhei was being honest, he'd have to admit that at that time he had suspected it was with malicious intent, like a snake eying his next prey.

So what did he think about what Rangiku had told him? He knew she wasn't lying to him, and Captain Unohana had confirmed to Rangiku that she wasn't losing it. Crazy? Yes, but the situation, not Rangiku. In the end all Shuhei could think was that he hoped that this would help his friend move on with her life, and prayed that this wouldn't send her spiraling downwards. He hoped that she would take whatever comfort in this that she could and return to being the vibrant woman he knew her to be.

"So this is where you snuck off to." A now familiar voice said as a shadow fell over Shuhei's face.

"Sorry Captain. I was, um, trying to clear my head." Shuhei replied even as he squinted slightly up to see the face of his captain.

"Shirking work to clear your head of a hangover?"

Shuhei colored slightly. "Well, um, that too..."

"Heh, no need to get so uptight. Thinking about Tousen?"

His hangover muddled brain was having a hard time keeping up with the turn in the conversation and Shuhei blinked up at him a few times before answering. "Yes. I'm not sure if I can ever forgive the choices he made, but I forgave him, and some days, that makes it harder."

Kensei roughly ruffled Shuhei's hair, making Shuhei wince slightly from the jarring it gave his head. "Was he a good captain to you?"

"Yes, he taught me a lot. And... even though it may seem ironic, he's the one that taught me about loyalty and justice."

"Then carry that in your heart and head. He made choices that you can't forgive, and neither can I, but not all of him was bad. We know that."

"Thanks, Captain." Shuhei said standing up. "It seems I've come full circle. You were my motivation to become a Shinigami, but it only happened because of Captain Tousen's part in the betrayal. I served and learned under him for a long time, not knowing the truth of that day, and now after all the dust has settled, I'm serving under the very captain that inspired me to be here in the first place."

"Heh, life is full of ironies."

"Captain, can I ask you something?"  
>"What is it, kid?"<p>

"Can you... forgive Captain Tousen?"

Kensei sighed. "I don't know, kid. I'm working on it. In a way, he was just as manipulated as the rest of us by Aizen, but he also knowingly killed some very good men."

Shuhei silently nodded.

"Anyways, enough of this sentimental bullshit. Take the rest of the day off. You're no use with such a hangover."

"Yes, Captain. I'm sorry."

"Next time, make sure to bring some sake for me."

Shuhei slowly made his way to his rooms, taking care not to make any sudden movements. And while his pounding head made him want to swear never to drink with Rangiku again, he felt lighter and better than he had in the months after the Winter War. The dust was finally beginning to settle, and things were, mostly, returning to some semblance of normalcy. Though not for everyone...


	5. Chapter 5

Four days had passed since Rangiku had left the hospital and still no sign of Gin. She was coming to the end of her patience and wits on what to do and she was starting to consider drastic means.

All that she could think of that was in common with all of her sightings, for a lack of a better word, of Gin was that they had happened when she was emotionally and/or physically rung out, but not deeply unconscious. Though she wasn't sure if Gin had made an appearance during the 3 days she'd lost, but if he had, she couldn't remember it and that wasn't any use either.

So what drastic means was she considering? At the risk of incurring Captain Unohana's wrath, Rangiku was thinking of fasting herself to weakness. In her current state, it shouldn't take more than a day or 2 of fasting to bring her to (what she hoped) was a suitably weakened state.

She had a theory that since Gin's reiatsu was mixed inside hers, maybe hers had to be weak for his not to be overwhelmed by hers. Though if that was the case, it would mean that she would have to continually maintain a weakened state to be able to communicate with him. But Rangiku set that thought aside. She'd think on that later. Right now, what was more important was to get to talk to him.

_If he doesn't appear tonight, I'm going to try it._ She thought to herself while getting ready for bed.

"Oi, don't be so rash." The voice she'd been wanting to hear so badly said crossly, just as she was tying the obi of her loose yukata.

"Gin!" She cried happily looking around, but she couldn't see him anywhere. "Gin, where are you?"

"I told you before, I'm with you."

"But I can't see you!"

"I don't have enough strength to project my form out." He replied a touch ruefully.

"But..."

"Don't do anything rash. I'll come see you soon. Until then, be a good girl and wait." Gin's voice was fading slightly as if even maintaining conversation with her was difficult.

"I..."

"Promise me, Rangiku." The voice was now barely a whisper, but held an urgency Rangiku couldn't ignore.

"I... I promise." She whispered, not able to deny Gin's urging.

"Thank... … ..."

Rangiku sighed. _Now what?_ She thought to herself ruefully. She had just made Gin a promise she couldn't break. Though he hadn't confirmed whether that would work or not. And he hadn't told her when he would come see her. And wait, he'd just read her thoughts? Damn, did that mean that she had no privacy? She had a million questions, and no answers still... This really was going to drive her crazy...

But a promise was a promise. She would have to wait and hope that Gin's 'soon' would be before she went insane.

Rangiku flopped down on her futon with a disgruntled sigh, as she prepared to try to sleep. Try being the key word. She didn't think she'd be able to sleep. Not in her current mood with thoughts and questions whirling through her head, and knowing that she'd have to just wait. She hated waiting.

_At least I know he'll come talk to me again soon._ She thought to herself as she looked up at the dark ceiling. And she was recovering from her injury. It still hurt to stretch, but the pain was subsiding. _Things are getting better._ She told herself, then snorted. Who was she trying to convince? She was no closer to understanding what was going on, and while she was healing, it was at a much slower pace than it should have been. Gin has promised to come talk to her soon, but who knew when his soon would be. He'd always kept to his own timetable. So where did that really leave her?

Patience had never been her strong point, but it seemed there was nothing she could do right now except wait. Although it definitely wasn't patiently.

Rangiku's last thoughts before drifting off to a light sleep was that she really was going to kick Gin as soon as she saw him the next time.


End file.
